As much as I have wanted to see the Panthers lose his year (and I wanted to see them lose REALLY REALLY BAD) I wanted to see them loose the Superbowl even more. I was frolicking in Glee early in the game yesterday cause 'ol Jake the lucky snake was playing so poorly. He looked out of place in that game early on, and all my suspicions were being validated. I was already plotting my comments for this site.

As the game went on I began to see something in Jake. I'm still not convinced he's the great QB some say he is, and I'm still not convinced he's this specimen of a leader some say he is, but GOD he has heart. They had no running game and their line wasn't blocking very well at all, and Jake kept comin' back. In my opinion, had it not been for Jake the Panthers would have been out of that game early in the 3rd quarter...game over.

I'll go on record and say that Jake Delhomme is one hell of a football player. He played his guts out yesterday, and it was sad to see him on the sidelines after the game. I thought the guy was gonna cry, and I couldn't have blamed him if he did. No question he left it ALL on the field, and that's really all you can ask of the guy. Had the Panters won that game (and Jake didn't loose it for 'em) there's no question who the MVP of the Superbowl would have been.

Finally, in a game that was supposed to suck, I think it was one of the best Superbowls I've ever seen, and Jake is the guy, in my opinion, that made that happen. He just woulnd't let his team lose. For those of you who have stubbornly supported Jake, let me say I still think Brooks should be the Saints QB, but as I've said before, I'm all about credit where credit is due, and Jake Delhomme deserves a LOT of credit. More than winning or losing yesterday, Jake proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that he belongs in the NFL as a starting QB. I'm still glad the Panthers lost, but I have a new respect for Jake Delhomme. I still think he and his team were incredibly lucky this year, and I think their luck finally ran out on 'em, but I can't take a thing away from Jake Delhomme. Congradulations to JAKE DELHOMME. He represented himself VERY well in the biggest sporting event in the world...what more can you ask?

JOESAM2002

02-02-2004 10:11 AM

I Feel Bad For Jake

Very good post! I sometimes think, it\'s a shame we can\'t all see these things. It was a great game. Both teams left it all out there. Thats what Pro football is all about. I just hope that our Saints watched and learned some valuable lessons from that game. Maybe at some point,before I die, I will see a New Orleans Saints win a Super Bowl with an effort just like that.

WhoDat

02-02-2004 10:17 AM

I Feel Bad For Jake

I will give credit where credit is due as well. It took a lot to step up and post that Saintfan. Good post - I\'ll hold it against you time and again! ;) LOL

PS - Your crow is still in the mail! :P

saintfan

02-02-2004 10:24 AM

I Feel Bad For Jake

I\'ll have a bite Whodat. This doesn\'t change my opinion of many of your opinions, but I\'m not gonna (nor have I ever) attempt to reduce what Jake did yesterday to fuel an argument with you...or anyone else. I\'m still of the opinion that Haz should get another year, and I\'m still of the opinion that Brooks is not the weak link for the Saints, but again I say Jake deserves all the credit in the world for his game yesterday. The Panthers lived on good fortune all year in my opinion, and maybe it just caught up to \'em when that kick when out of bounds with 68 seconds left. Live by the sword...die by the sword. The MVP going to Brady is up for debate, but had Carolina won there\'s no question who the MVP would have been. That\'s what it boils down to for me.

saintz08

02-02-2004 11:19 AM

I Feel Bad For Jake

Quote:

Jake proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that he belongs in the NFL as a starting QB.

Hold the presses

Does this mean you would have to second guess your position on the great Jake Delhomme conspiracy theory ??? :o

saintfan

02-02-2004 11:59 AM

I Feel Bad For Jake

Not for a second 08. I think Haz made a decision to start Brooks because he didn\'t think Brooks couldn\'t play. I DO NOT think Haz was part of a conspiracy theory to keep Jake Delhomme off the field.

saintz08

02-02-2004 12:21 PM

I Feel Bad For Jake

Quote:

Not for a second 08.

Even inspite of this earlier report ??

Saints lose their last three games when they needed to win just one to make the playoffs. Saw Haslett stick to his guns and insist his quarterback was perfectly fine, when anybody with a pair of eyes and three brain cells knew different.

The Saints admitted as much after the season when they disclosed that Brooks would need surgery to repair his injured shoulder.

Billy Joe Tolliver, who played for the Saints in the late 1990s and urged the Haslett regime to keep Delhomme, said it was a delicate situation.

\"All those coaches wanted to see Delhomme on that field and see what he could do,\" Tolliver said. \"But they\'ve also got some issues in that locker room. . . .

\"Jake\'s going to go in there, and he\'s going to play his (butt) off, and then what do you do now? Now you\'re dividing your team.\"

Great. They avoided a controversy.

Danno

02-02-2004 12:30 PM

I Feel Bad For Jake

My personal opinion if anybody cares is that I truly believe that Brooks would have done just as well as Jake did, if not better, in both the regualr season and the superbowl.

Jake did exactly what most of us thought he would. New England committed to stopping Davis and was going to force Delhomme to beat them. They did, and Jake almost did. Jake made some great throws. All of which I\'ve seen our boy make repeatedly.

And yes, if Carolina had won Jake would have been the MVP, no question.

saintfan

02-02-2004 12:37 PM

I Feel Bad For Jake

08 --

I\'m not saying that Haz didn\'t make a judgement call. What I\'m saying is that there was no conspiracy theory to keep Delhomme off the field. That insinuates that Haz had some sort of vendetta against Jake, and I just don\'t buy it. Did Jim think Brooks was well enough to play? It would seem so, but you\'ll have to ask him. Delhomme at the time said he played through the very same injury in College. Brooks\' numbers were down, but I and plenty of others maintain the Saints could have (and should have) won one of those games anyway. Whether or not Jim made the right call will forevermore depend on whom you ask, and I (we -- this entire board) already know your opinion. Jake is gone 08, and it\'s time for you to move on too...

[Edited on 2/2/2004 by saintfan]

saintz08

02-02-2004 02:02 PM

I Feel Bad For Jake

Quote:

What I\'m saying is that there was no conspiracy theory to keep Delhomme off the field.

So what you are saying is , inspite of comments made within the team and from players that were with the team when Delhomme was there .

Quote:

Billy Joe Tolliver, who played for the Saints in the late 1990s and urged the Haslett regime to keep Delhomme, said it was a delicate situation.

\"All those coaches wanted to see Delhomme on that field and see what he could do,\" Tolliver said. \"But they\'ve also got some issues in that locker room. . . .

\"Jake\'s going to go in there, and he\'s going to play his (butt) off, and then what do you do now? Now you\'re dividing your team.\"

and Joe Horn who clearly states :

Quote:

Horn emphasized that he wasn\'t criticizing Brooks. I\'m not here to bash Brooks either. I\'m here to bash the man responsible for denying Delhomme a chance to start with the Saints.

And what the world saw :

Quote:

Saw Haslett stick to his guns and insist his quarterback was perfectly fine, when anybody with a pair of eyes and three brain cells knew different.

You think :

Quote:

I think Haz made a decision to start Brooks because he didn\'t think Brooks couldn\'t play

Not what the players think:

Quote:

\"Jake\'s going to go in there, and he\'s going to play his (butt) off, and then what do you do now? Now you\'re dividing your team.\"